Booker T. Washington Alumnus, Former NFL Player Named School’s New Head Coach

Booker T. Washington High School did not have to search far to find their new head coach Jonathan Brown.

For the past five seasons, Brown has been the defensive coordinator and said he is honored to take the reins.

The Hornets are in the heart of summer training and Brown said he hopes his knowledge of the game and his history with the school will make a difference with his players.

Speaking as he would to his players, Brown said, "I was out here at S.E. Williams 6 in the morning running stairs - I'm you. That's what I preach, that I am you. I can give you a blueprint, I could tell you how to do it, but you have to make your own decisions. Be a good student first, then I can help you on the athlete side."

After a solid career with the Tennessee Volunteers and several years in the NFL, Brown still had a promise to keep. "I went back to get my degree from Tennessee because I promised my mother that. I was sitting around with my friends and they said you should coach,” Brown said.

After speaking to his former Tennessee head coach Philip Fulmer, who is a member of the college football Hall of Fame, Brown knew leading the Hornets was the right decision.

Brown said, "He gave me some coaching tips to live by, kind of a coaching motto, and there are some things I have written down. I kind of live by that and he has been a big influence in my life."

Brown is the first Booker T. Washington Alumnus to be the Hornets head coach since Ed Lacy stepped down in 1980.